You will add to the mental association in readers minds if your names echo the setting you want to convey. You should ask yourself what kind of novel you want to make and what the setting is like, then examine what the names should be. It only comes into play re place and character names in countries that dont speak the same language as the one most of my characters come from. This week, for all you hardworking writers out there, ive created a master list of fantasy names. This book is comprised of names, street names, cities, creatures, things like that. I always enjoy coming up with names these days now that i can sort of listen to the characters and the settings. No resemblance to any actual fantasy novel is specifically intended.
The stupid fake languages that sound goofy, the overly fantasyesque names of characters, worldbuilding thats really big but without depth, or great. Some of this will come from my imagination, and others will be made through generators online, whi. Take numpies, for instance, who are basically the archetypal trolls under the bridge, if the trolls were always cold and loved hot water bottles. In an interview with playstation lifestyle, godfall creative director keith lee describes some of the games inspirations, saying, brandon sandersons ongoing the stormlight archive series, joe abercrombies the first law trilogy and isaac asimovs foundation series sets the tone and texture of our fantasy world. Characters in the realm of fantasy have always had exorbitant powers or capabilities that nearly dwarf a gods power sometimes to the extent that it makes a strenuous task of generating equally contending antagonists. I dont really care for dystopiaapocalyptic books and the book does not have to be categorized as a comedy but it does have to be a fantasy fairies, werewolves, vampires, magic, witches, angels, demons, paranormal, ghosts etc but there has to be at least one character in the book who it really funny. Portentous apostrophes and incongrouslynamed characters hands up terry goodkind and anne mccaffrey drive. A master list of fantasy character names and places barely hare. Get to know your imaginary world you need to be able to describe it in detail if you are going to convince your readers, for the duration of the book at least, that it exists. If a virtual private party is more your thing, go here for details. I am writing book five of a long, epic fantasy series called dirt.
A cool last names list for character creation cool last. If you think about some of the characters listed above, there are several types. Character name generator the ultimate bank of 2,000,000. Obviously stories will rarely fit just one genre, in fact, out of the 10 genres in this generator you could probably think of a plot that would fit in at. I have to write a book for school and i need names for my leading male and female roles in the book ive narrowed it down to 3 names each, but im still open for suggestions.
Put yourself in your audiences shoes as they pick up your book for the first time. Readers may have expected clearcut morals from characters in the fairy tales of their childhoods, but as teenagers and adults reading fantasy, they expect more gone are the days of evil villains with no motive but power. It doesnt matter whether you are writing fan fiction, creating an rpg character or writing a novel, fitting names are essential to dynamic characters and. Shorter names, of course, including onesyllable names, are for rural or smalltown characters. Ive read them a few times, and every new readthrough reveals more detailsmany of them humorousthat i had not teased from the text earlier. There are plenty of sites that list the lotr names, but there are so many fantasy novels out there with awesome names in them i. How do fantasy authors find names for their characters and places. For tips on giving your fantasy novels character the perfect name, read on. One is that more traditional names are going to be easier to blend in. If you are going to use rw names out of context, id suggest you bear two things in mind. Id find it a lot easier to accept fantasy characters called will or sam than wayne or darren, which feel exclusively comptemporary.
One thing that irritates me about a lot of fantasies is how the gray characterization tends to be confined to the good side. Unique last name ideas for fictional characters of your book. In the vast majority of fantasy novels, the characters names are somewhat original bilbo, kvothe, daenerys, pug and so on. Unfortunately the names they are given are always the same. People have finished reading harry potter or lord of the rings or are simply just getting into fantasy and are looking for something interesting, asking for advice from the more experienced fantasy readers. Probably the biggest list on wattpad of fantasy names. Its all right for the hero to do a little soulsearching of course, the suspense is lessened because he always makes the right decision in the end but heaven forbid your. May on a coauthored series the dragons of kudare and i are working a new book, and we needed to name a character. Unique, original character names for male and female fantasy characters. What are some cool names for a fantasy book character. Spam or selfpromotional the list is spam or selfpromotional. The fantasy theme encompasses a wide variety of settings.
If you have a lot of names with ion endings, for example, or ths, or that all have multiple combinations of es and os, keep them all in the same ethnic groups. Kiss kiss doesnt really stand for keep it simple, stupid, but its a good principle to follow when. Simply referencing something from your book wont cut it. Give your characters names that not only begin with different letters but that also sound as dissimilar as possible. You can follow any responses to this entry through the rss 2. Use this questionnaire to help you discover 40 new ways to build your character s unique identity. They introduce their readers not only to plots and characters, but entire new worlds, complete with history, geography, language.
When in doubt, ask a friend to read the name out loud. Five tips for planning a fantasy novel writers bureau. For a discussion of the names and the style they represent and a description of how they were chosen please see the 2part blog, the women of fantasy. Anybody know any good names for fantasy book characters. While a lot of fantasy stories focus around settings based in copying j. Are you writing a book and need a name for your character. Take inspiration from the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe and mix a human with. This is a great way to make a character feel both magical and relatable. If character names arent coming easily, try one of these tips to kickstart. Sort using filters such as language, gender, and fantasy and even discover the meaning behind your favorites. This may seem like a formulaic approach to developing characters, but fantasy character types are nothing more than a framework in the same way that a plot outline is. This category is for fictional characters in written fantasy. I usually love the female names and want to make a list both male and female of any that you know.
Tolkien and stereotypes about medieval europe, many do not. Ben and jacqueline will be easier to remember than ben and jennifer, for example. Once you know what the story is about, it will be easier to decide what to call it. The names are separated into different categories, but theyre all pretty straight forward. As for the character names, use names that relate to important traits of the characters or what their position is in the book.
Npr top 100 science fiction and fantasy books quiz by johnlk. One way to create memorable characters is to begin with set types and then add depth. Depending on your ability, creating names for people, places, and beings in fantasy books can either be fun or a pain. The girls names are the first three and the boys are the last. The names below represent 40 of the bestknown or bestloved female characters in fantasy books and films set in nonearth worlds. Anthony ryan on naming fantasy charactersand making sure. Its better to call a character caleb, which means faithful or faithful dog, than to overkill it by naming.
This name generator will give you 10 random book titles for one of 10 genres based on your choice. A guide to finding and creating fantasy names if you have ever tried your hand at writing fantasy, you most likely have run into the problem of finding names for your characters and places. It is set on a world called dirt surprise, surprise and has no relationship to our world at all, other than a large percentage of the population are human and all the characters speak in english well, in my version they do. In a later response, lee described some details about godfalls. Inappropriate the list including its title or description facilitates illegal activity, or contains hate speech or ad hominem attacks on a fellow goodreads member or author. Andre cruz is a science fiction and fantasy author who loves to share.
Id like to get everyones assessment upon who they believe is the most. The surnames are kept rather generic, which is mainly because surnames are heavily dependent on the culture and history of the language it belongs to. Some authors use special naming convention, like robin hobb who uses a quality for name shrewd farseer in the farseer trilogy. The number of characters in many fantasy series are so infinite, it turns out to be a mad scramble to keep track of them all especially when the readers still trying to differentiate between boldon, the protagonist, and bolgon, the shrewish elf from book 2. Our trained soothsayers predict the hottest new fantasy novel this season will be called. Incorrect book the list contains an incorrect book please specify the title of the book. Ive been doing this for three decades and will provide some tricks and thoughts to help. This category has the following 47 subcategories, out of 47 total. Flipping through phone books is the easiest way to coin innovative and unique names for fictional characters. Play sporcle s virtual live trivia to have fun, connect with people, and get your trivia on. See more ideas about fantasy names, names and names with meaning.
Creating fantasy names for your fiction stories randy. Consider giving your human character traits such as the ability to fly, mindreading powers, invisibility, or any other powers you can dream up. Fantasy writers have a harder time of it than serious novelists. Its made for currently writing authors, but can be read for fun. Create human characters with magical traits for a whimsical effect. The mythological creatures and characters and their stories will give you a great basis for your new world. But when that fails, writers need a subtle creative push to find a name that actually fits the characters. The suebi were various germanic people who lived in germania at the time of the roman empire, and in northern portugal in the kingdom of the suebi after the roman empire. Were providing that push in the form of this buzzle post. Naming places in a fantasy novel into another world. This name generator will generate 10 random suebi names. The shifter, was chosen for the 2014 list of ten books all young georgians should read from the georgia center for the book. A master list of fantasy names for your fantasy world and characters dont just craft characters, master craft them.
A boy dose not despise real forest because he has read about enchanted ones, the reading makes all real forest a little enchanted. Note that several of the names below, such aerin and lyanna, appear in multiple. Some say its the best fantasy name generator site around, which is very humbling to hear. If the pov understands whats being said, theres no reason not to put it in english, and if they dont understand it, theyre not going to hear the individual words. The fantasy novel title generator was written by alis franklin for her sins of being bad at thinking up titles. How to name characters in a fantasy novel good story company.
Join a live hosted trivia game for your favorite pub trivia experience done virtually. The following 53 pages are in this category, out of 53 total. The hardest thing sometimes for us to create, isnt great characters, plot ideas, or shocking twists. Take a hard look at your cast of characters and ask yourself if they all really need to be in this book. This name generator will generate 10 surnames, which fit many types of fantasy settings. This list may not reflect recent changes learn more. The title is the last thing you should be worrying about.
The 7 rules of picking names for fictional characters. Naming places in a fantasy novel last week, i dedicated my post to tips on developing character names but the places in your novel need names too. Characters and character development fantasy offers authors the opportunity to illustrate the best, worst and, most significantly, somewhereinbetween of human beings by setting them within a context that allows the reader to experience all the foibles of humanity through a more comfortable lens. Names dont just identify people, they tell a story. I think you really need to write the book before you worry about a title. In my literature related internet journeys ive seen the same scenario time and time again. Plus, fresh, underused names for fantasy towns and villages. Cvs top 100 science fiction and fantasy characters list. If you want to give hints of a place rather like anc. What are some good names for adventurefantasy characters. All you have to do is scour the page of 300 unique, original fantasy names and keep this list a reference while you write that fandomworthy novel. I dont read a lot in the genre, but for me ill say what makes any fantasy book stand out is when it doesnt appear to do any of the things that things i hate that fantasy books frequently do.